Helen Keller (1880 - 1968)
Author and lecturer. An illness at the age of 19 months left her deaf, blind and mute. Through the work of teacher Anne Sullivan, she learned to overcome these daunting handicaps and became a powerful and effective national spokesperson on behalf of others with similar disabilities.
Bishop Leontine Kelly (1920 - )
A Methodist bishop, she was the first African American woman to be elected bishop in the United Methodist Church. She served as bishop of the California-Nevada Annual Conference and the president of the Western Jurisdiction College of Bishops. Committed to peace and justice, she was arrested several times for protesting nuclear weapons, and was one of 18 bishops who signed a letter to the Methodist Church in response to its policy toward gays and lesbians in the church.
Susan Kelly-Dreiss (1942 - )
For over 30 years, Susan Kelly-Dreiss has worked to enact legal protections, implement innovative services and heighten public awareness on behalf of battered women and their children. In 1976, Kelly-Dreiss lobbied for passage of Pennsylvania’s first domestic violence law, and later that same year, she co-founded the nation’s first domestic violence coalition – the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV). She was a founding member of the National Network to End Domestic Violence, and has played a key role in drafting federal legislation including the Federal Violence Prevention and Services Act and the Violence Against Women Act.
Frances Kathleen Oldham Kelsey, Ph.D., M.D. (1914 - )
A medical and pharmaceutical researcher for the Food and Drug Administration, she refused to approve the use of thalidomide in this country, saving countless babies from terrible deformities. As a result of her testimony before Congress, the 1962 drug act was passed, giving the FDA greater control over the manufacture, testing and distribution of drugs. During a career with the FDA which spanned over 39 years, her supervision of clinical investigators has institutionalized the protection of the patient in drug investigations.
Nannerl O. Keohane (1940 - )
The first contemporary woman to head both a major women's college (Wellesley) and a research university (Duke). Her efforts have increased minority student enrollment and improved faculty diversity.
Billie Jean King (1943 - )
Dominated the world of tennis for more than 20 years, winning 20 Wimbledon titles, 13 U.S. Open titles and more. King was the founder of the Women's Tennis Association and helped create the Women's Sports Foundation.
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (1926 - 2004)
After graduating from the University of Zurich medical school, Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross married and moved to the United States. She began working in hospitals, where she was appalled at the treatment of terminally ill patients. Her 1969 bestseller On Death and Dying revolutionized the medical profession's treatment and understanding of dying patients, serving as a voice for the rights of the terminally ill. Her work was a catalyst for now commonly accepted ideas such as hospice care, living wills, and death with dignity.
Maggie Kuhn (1905 - 1995)
Following a forced retirement at age 65, Kuhn began work forming the Gray Panthers, an organization which addressed age discrimination and pension rights. Kuhn also addressed large public issues, including nursing home reform, forced retirement and fraud against the elderly.
Stephanie L. Kwolek (1923 - )
Interested in science and medicine from a young age, Kwolek graduated from Carnegie Institute of Technology and then took a job at DuPont Chemicals to save for graduate studies. However, her love of working with polymers kept her at DuPont, where she discovered the fiber that led to the development of Kevlar, a bulletproof material five times stronger than steel. Kwolek is the recipient or co-recipient of 17 U.S. patents.
